Lubricating apparatus



Dec. 20, 1927.

G. L. N. MEYER wanton-Ina APPARATUS Fil'ed April 25. 1924 WITNESSES I ZAYW.

. The .brush-carrying-spindles employed in Patented Dee. 20, 1927.

. were STAT GEORGE L. N MEYEIQOF MILWAUKEE, WIS

' wean consnv, ASSIGNOR 'ro eno. J. MEYER MAN- UFKCTURING COMPANY, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION OF W18 CONSIN.

' LUBRICATING" Application filed'April 25,

The invention relates to lubricating apparatus, more particularly for the bearings of high speed vertical spindles.

bottle washing machines, for washing the inside of bottles, rotate at a high speed and have a tendency to whip when in motion.

To prevent such occurrence, long bearings are necessary, which have required frequent attention to keep out their length.

An object of the present invention is to provide means for lubricating the spindle properly lubricated throughand its companion driving member by which leakage of the lubricant is avoided and; only infrequent v attention is necessary for. replenishing the lubricant. v

Another object of the invention is to provide a vertical spindle hearing which is auto matically lubricated throughout its length during the rotation of the s indle.

A further object of the invention is to I provide a vertical spindle bearing with lubriing and extends therebelow, whereby a leak spindle.

. tional view through a spindle drive em bodying the invention; and

. particularly defined eating means including an oil reservoir fixed to a spindle which is journalled in the bear age path is avoided to prevent loss of lubricant from the lower end of the reservoir,

Y and thus permitting the provision of a sealed reservoir at an intermediate portion of the The invention vfurther consists in thesev eral features hereinafter set-forth and more by claims at the conclusion hereof.

In the drawings Fig. 1 is a' vertical see- Fig. 2 is a sectional view through the spindle bearing member.

In the drawings, the numeral 10 desig-- nates a vertically reciprocating frameon Y which a spindlebearing member 11 is mount- 1 ed by an intermediate flange 12. A spindle 13 is journalled in the bearing memberfll and has its lower end 14 journalled in a" female step bearing Y15secur ed to the lower part of the frame 10, this part being spaced from the upper part. In the present instance the spindle is hollow to receive a stream of Water. under pressure from the lowerfpart ot the frame, which forms a APPARATUS.

1924. Serial No. 708,965.

Water chamber; the water serving to lubricate the step hearing.

A pinion 16-is secured to the spindle be- .low the bearingmember 11. and has an upwardly extending shell 17 surrounding the lower part of the bearing member to form an oil r: servoir 18. For this purpose the p1n1on' a i shell are spaced from the end and sides of the bearing member and sur- Above the flange an' oil cup 19 is con-' nected to the bearing member by means of an elbow 20, and helical oil grooves 21 and 22 are formed in the bearing member above and below. the oil opening, being cut in opposite directions from the opening receiving the elbow and the upper one termlnating short of the top of the bearmg member. The reduced upper end of the spindle is connected to the'lower end by a coupling member 23 engaging the top of the bearing member and rotatable thereon.

The spindle may be driven in any suit-.

able mannerbut I have shown a' gear 24 round the major portion of the bearing memher below its attaching flange.

the two grooves meshing with the pinion 16 and rotatably tion 31 extending upward-1y above the hearing to form an oilreservoir 32 and a bore 33 forms a conduit between the reservoir and the bearing surface of stationary pin 25.

. The lower end of the gear 24 is threaded it to receive a cap-34 for preventing leakage of such 'oil as may find its way to the endof the bearing pin, 35 are provided fora driving c nnection with another shaft; not shown. I

For lubricating the spindle bearing, a sufficient quantity of oil is poured'intothe .oil

cup 12 to fill it while the spindle is at rest, whereupon, the oil will find'its way through the helical oil groove 22 and into the reserstationary pin 25 having. a I

and bevelled gear teeth.

provided at its upper end I thereby maintaining a to the additional length of bearing surface oil ceases to' rise therein to instead of on the stationary bearing member,

with suitable provision the filling reservoir 19, rotating, serves to indicate the a with oil through the oil cup v oir 18 in the pinion 16, finally emptying the 011 cup 19. Upon the rotation of. the'spindle in the direction indicated the gil is-forced up through the helical groove 22 in the bearing member 11 andv again fills the oil cup 19,

' head corresponding above the oil opening in the bearing member. The oil pressure developed by the rotation of. the spindle, however, is sufiicient to enable the oil to reach the top of the spindle bearing, but leakage being prevented by the p counter-pressure developed in the pil groove '21 which 1s formed in the opposite direction to the oil groove presence of oil in while the-spindle is oiling system,-and when the the proper height durin rotation, it. will give notice'of the need %or additional oilin the lower reservoir 18. After the spindle comes torest the oil again finds itsrway into the reservoir 18, where it remains until the further rotation of the spindle. 3 In some instances it may be desirable tQ form the helicaloil grooves on the spindle tioning of the for continuous communication with the'filling reservoir as the, spindle rotates. The functioning, remains the same as that explained above.

, The reservoir 32 of the gear 24 is filled 28 at thetop of the stationary bearing pin 25,-and the head of oil in the reservoir makes it possible to effectively lubricate all parts of the bearing.

The outer wall of the oil reservoir in both the pinion 16-"and the gear 24 extends upvision of a rotating r wardly toa height sufficient to loss; of oil ,over the upper edgewhile the spindle is being rotate The invention provides a simple but effective way of lubricating all parts of a long spindle bearing with no oss of lubricant by leakage. and requiring infrequent attention for replenishing the lubricant. The proeservoir secured directly to the spindle permits the reservoir to be placedand efiectively sealed against. leakv members having a helical oil proper funcwith, whereby leakage however,

-the upper portion of prevent any said bearing member to age at an intermediate portion of the spindie in cases where the splndle projects downhaving a rotatable member carried thereby,

The combination with a vertically-dis an oil "reservoir surrounding the .lower end of said bearing member, a filling reservoir directly communicating' with said rotatable member at a 'oint intermediate, the ends of said bearing member and forming a standpipe for lubricating the upper portion of said bearing surface between said groove commu: whereby oil is membe'r, .the bearing nicating with said reservoirs, conducted by gravity from the voir' to the lowerreservoir while the'ro tatable member is' at rest, and said lower reservoir along said bearing surface and into said filling reservoir by the rotation ofsaid spindle, and the bearing surface between said members having an oppositely directed helical oil grooye above sa'i filling reservoir and communicating thereof oil is prevented from the upper end of the bearing, the pressure-induced head of oil in" said filling reservoir extending end of the bearlng the ,bearing.

2. The combination, with'a vertically disposed bearing member and a rotatable vertical spindle member carried thereby, of means for supplying and forcing oil up wardly along the bearing lower end of said bearing member, means for preventing leakage of oil from the upper end of said bearing member, and a reservoir connected to said bearing member at an intermediate portion to receive oil forcedoupwardly along the bearing-.member and extending substantially to the upper end of form an oil-'supplyfilling reser-" fored from substantially to the upper to in'surelubrication of surfaces from the v ing standpipefor the upper portion of said bearing member. I t a In testimony whereof, I afix my signature.

' esonen L. N. MEYER. 

